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Temple City Kanchipuram

Little did I know I was going to visit a temple, which would later become embroiled over the murder of a priest. Kanchipuram is a city dotted with temples and well known for the lovely silk sarees. And the tour was taking us to visit a place where the sarees were woven and gave us enough time to explore the temples in the neighbourhood.

City of LearningAbout 72 km from Chennai, the city has a very religious culture. It is the city where the head of Hinduism, the Shankaracharya lives. The institution, called Kanchi Math, was founded by Adi Sankaracharya. And this was spoken is revered hushed tones when we asked about it.

As long back as we were told, the city was a place of learning or ghatikasthanam. In fact, it was a surprise to know that it was also famous for education on Jainism and Buddhism between the 1st and 5th centuries. Walking around trying to find something to eat, we discovered the two famous temples are Kailasanathar and the Varadharaja Perumal Temple.

Varadharaja Perumal TempleLittle do you know what importance a land holds, until there is some news about it. Over the years, all that has stayed in my mind about this famous temple was the emerald green atti tree, the numerous statues, 32 shrines and the huge temple complex with its pillar which has chain carved on it. There is even a 100 pillar hall, which is simply breathtaking.